Story Six: Kal, Al, & Cassim
by SpelCastrMax
Summary: Three generations attempt to have quality time and are interrupted.


STORY SIX: Kal, Al, & Cassim  
  
Disclaimer: If I owned them, I'd probably be laid off by now (stupid Disney company and their stupid lay off's...I'm not bitter for the sake of the animators who have to find jobs now).  
Author's Note: These are the characters you will be unfamiliar with:   
Kalil: Aladdin & Jasmine's teenaged son who wouldn't mind some peace in Agrabah, but still can't back down from an adventure.  
Almira: Aladdin and Jasmine's daughter who loves clothes and helping her older brother sneak out.  
Celeste Nomad: A teenaged girl from the future who is stuck in Agrabah because of her selective memory loss.  
  
***Just so it's straight, Celeste is not based off anyone I know. She's actually a take on my idea for if two characters from another TV series I used to watch had a child***  
  
Previously in Story 5 Mira, feeling the need to grow up, rose a magical army of charming knights.  
  
WOW!!! Months later and I finally write another one of these. Sheesh, that's a long time. I'm going to blame society and my parents (why not? Everyone else does).  
  
Note: Jarietta is an Arabic name meaning "Earthen Water Jar".  
  
USELESS TRIVIA!!!: See and Hear Cassim's voice (John Rhys Davies) in two movies this year (2003): The Lord of the Rings The Two Towers (as Gimli and Treebeard) & The Jungle Book 2 (as Mowgli's adoptive father).  
Kalil glanced up at the sky, then tapped his foot impatiently. "Father! Grandfather! Come on, old guys! We're going to loose daylight at this rate."  
  
Cassim stepped outside to shake his head at his grandson, then glanced at Aladdin with slight disapproval. The oldest man mounted his usual stead and awaited his decedents.  
  
Aladdin was practically dragging himself from the palace, then pulled onto his horse without much difficulty, and shouted goodbye to the three females who were watching.  
  
As the trio rode out of the city, their spectators giggled.  
  
"I take it Al isn't very thrilled about this male bonding idea," Celeste laughed.  
  
Jasmine shook her head as she tried to imagine the arguments that were going to begin as soon as the men were outside of the city. "At least it gives Kal some time to spend with both of them."  
  
"Are you sure that's a good thing, Mother," Mira questioned as she saw her brother blissfully clueless to their grandfather criticizing their father's riding.  
  
"I'm glad women don't have any silly bonding rituals like men do," Celeste said wrinkling.  
  
"I agree," spoke Mira happily.  
  
Jasmine nodded, then took her eyes from the men in life riding off for the day. "Well, girls. What do you say we go shopping?"  
*****  
Kal glanced over his shoulder excitedly. Every two years he took a trip out to the nearby oasis with his father and grandfather, no girls, animal companions, or magical creatures to follow them. Usually, their plans for fishing ended in a large disagreement between all three. It wasn't that Aladdin and Cassim didn't along, it was just that both men were used to being in charge and Kalil was quickly becoming like them. But this year, the prince was going to keep everyone peaceful. It as going to be the perfect day.  
  
"Are we going the right way?" Cassim asked as he inspected their surroundings.  
  
"Trust me, Dad," Aladdin replied confidentially.  
  
Cassim scoffed, "That sounds like you're avoiding the question.  
  
Kal sensed the growing tension. He let out a cheerful, "Look what I can do!" then proceeded to jump about on his horse like a circus performer. His legs would bounce around the saddle until they at last reached the palm spring. At that point the prince was panting loudly and didn't care. He'd stopped the first fight.  
  
The oasis was small. There was a tiny fresh water pool over run with exotic fish. Trees shaded the grassy area littered with rocks for them to sit on.  
  
Cassim began to unpack. "Kalil, be a good lad and build a fire."  
  
The prince paused with realization. "I don't really know how to make a fire, Grandfather. We usually have Genie do it."  
  
Aladdin tried to motion for his son not to mention that, but it was too late. Cassim frowned. "Do you have that blue oaf do everything for you? How will the boy learn anything useful if he's pampered?" He tossed his grandson a pair of flint stones.  
  
With a sigh, Aladdin defended with, "Don't tell me how to raise Kal. Jasmine and I are doing pretty well, I think."  
  
"Pretty well? He comes from a great lineage of leaders. He should be perfect."  
  
"Parenting isn't really your strong point, Dad, so I wouldn't butt in if I were you."  
  
Meanwhile, Kal tried to get their attention. At first, he piled sticks together, trying to find a way to spark them with the flints. When that failed, he ended up shouting at the two grown men. "I think it's too warm out here for a fire anyway."  
  
It wasn't long until he was no longer the subject of argument, but part of it. Kal suddenly didn't care if all of his plans were flying out the window, he just wanted to be right.  
  
Aladdin kept his best efforts to be the voice of reason, yet each time their yelling would just grow louder. Finally, the young sultan growled, "That's it! Trip over. Kal, pack the things up. We're going back to Agrabah!"  
  
Kal angrily kicked the ground, but did as he was told. As soon as he turned his back heard a woman's high pitched voice say, "What is all that noise!"  
  
Kal dived into the bushes and watched as a plain looking woman with green skin appeared from thin air. She scowled at the thief and sultan. "Men. I should have known. Trying to start a war are we? Well, not in my oasis!"  
  
"Your oasis? We've been coming here for years and we've never seen you," Aladdin pointed out.  
  
She ran a quick hand through her bobbed hair cut. "I just moved in. I'm still deciding where to put the cage of doom. Oh I know!" With that a cage made from hardened clay fell over the two men.  
  
Aladdin thrust himself against the bars but they would not break. "What is this?" he wondered aloud.  
  
Cassim inspected the cage as well, rubbing the dust between his fingers. "Son, didn't you once tell me about elemental monsters made out of clay?"  
  
"The Almuddi?" Aladdin replied, "Yeah, but none of them looked human like her."  
  
"Her?!" the woman snorted, "I am not a her; I am Jarietta. And those 'monsters' you refer to were my greatest creations!" (*okay, if this idea conflicts with any of the Almuddi plotlines from the series, I'm sorry. I haven't seen an Almuddi episode in at least five years so give me a break*)  
  
"Oh boy," Al muttered glancing at his father who shared his worried expression.  
  
Jarietta pulled a little on the door of the cage, making double sure the lock was in place. "You can just stay in there and think about what you've done to my children while I decide where to bury you."  
  
She steeped into a circle of trees, completely concealing herself from Kal's sight. He could hear her whispering to someone. He crept through the bushes to understand what she said. She faced a glowing screen that hung in the air framed by black smoke. Kal couldn't see who it was she was talking to, but he could hear him.  
  
A man's smooth voice barked, "Did you catch them?"  
  
"One of the simplest captures of my career, I think," she boasted as she inspected her gnarled fingernails.  
  
The unknown man made a thoughtful grunt. "Too simple, I'll bet. You have all three of them and they can't escape."  
  
Her confident smirk disappeared and Jarietta coughed out, "Three? I only found two; the old man and the sultan."  
  
"Fool!" the man snapped, "You have to find the son. Without all three it'll never work. And if I don't get what I want, you don't get what you want."  
  
"Alright, alright," she grumbled, "I get it. Don't be so dramatic." The window faded and Jarietta waved her hand nonchalantly. Three lions made of wet brown clay sprung up from the ground. Almost on reflex they caught Kal's scent and dove into the trees.  
  
The prince ran from them, his feet kicking up sand as he scrambled away. Meanwhile, inside the cage, Aladdin was trying to shatter the bars while his father shook his head. "It's no use, son. We'll just have to wait until Kal runs for help."  
  
Al scoffed, "At least we're all spending time together. I can't wait to tell Jasmine about this one."  
  
Cassim was thoughtful for a moment, then in a voice filled with guilt he told his son, "I used to tell your mother about my adventures. She never approved...and certainly would have never come with me." He pat a hand on Aladdin's back. "You certainly caught a rare one."  
  
The man only nodded, leaning against the dusty bars. "Kal and Mira are great too, you know. You don't have to push them all the time."  
  
"I know they are great, that is why I push them," Cassim pointed out, "How will they ever be their best if they never learn through experience?"  
  
"That's how I grew up and I'd rather not expose my kids to it," Aladdin replied, "I know you mean well, but cut them a break. Alright?"  
  
Cassim agreed. The two men watched Jarietta return. She was wringing her hands and muttering about her lost children, occasionally glaring at Aladdin.  
  
"Son, exactly how many enemies do you have?" Cassim asked.  
  
In other part of the oasis, where the palms had left a thick blanket of dried leaves on the ground, the lions caught up with Kal. He slowed down, turning to face his enemies. When each one roared, sand blew from their mouths and their teeth rattled.  
  
The prince tried to think back to the bedtime stories about the Almuddi; how did his parents beat the clay monsters. He listened to the dry brush crunching between the lions' toes. Kalil fell to the ground on his stomach while the creatures moved closer, slowing their pace to savor the catch. Kal struck the two flint stones together. After about three tries he managed a small spark that was gone before it was even there. He glanced up at the lions who were grinning at him. This time, he rubbed the two stones upon each other with more force. The brush caught fire and Kal scrambled up a tree.  
  
The lions were too preoccupied with watching him climb to notice how quickly the fire surrounded them. The flames licked at their soft clay bodies and before they could escape, they hardened into statues.  
  
Kal managed to fall back down to the ground and avoid the fire. He used a saddle blanket from one of the horses to stamp it out before it spread. As he pounded the last of the sparks with the course material, Jarietta appeared.  
  
"My babies!" she cried as she hugged the baked clay lions, "All I wanted was the power to bring back the Almuddi, but now I have lost more of my creations."  
  
As she wept overdramatically, Kal backed into the bushes to the cage where his father and grandfather waited. As he picked the clay lock, he told them what had happened.  
  
Aladdin glanced at Cassim with a know it all smirk. "What was that you were saying about Kal not living up to his potential?"  
  
The three ran to their horses, but Jarietta had already come out of her depression. "Oh, no you don't!" she screamed, "I don't care if he wants all three of you; you're all mine!"  
  
She rose up over them, her fingers growing longer as she grew taller (*because what's a Disney adventure unless someone grows giant size or changes shape in some way*). Her hands reached out for the men. Cassim pulled his son out of the supernatural woman's reach as Kal tried to round up the animals before they were frightened away. With the other two busy dodging her right hand, Jarietta had the perfect opportunity to scoop up Kalil in her left palm.  
  
"Well Aladdin," her voice boomed, shaking the desert sands, "You destroy my babies, I'll just have to destroy yours!"  
  
Her right hand pinned down Aladdin and Cassim just enough so they weren't crushed. By staring up at the spaces between her gnarled fingers, they could witness Jarietta beginning to squeeze the struggling boy's body.  
  
Al called out, "No!" however he could barely move and for one of the few times in his life panic was over taking clear thinking.  
  
Kalil could feel his breath stifle and his ribs crack. There was another breaking sound and for a moment Kal thought he had died. When he realized that Jarietta had loosened her grip, he opened his eyes. Clouds had darkened the sky and there was a second crash of thunder.  
  
Without warning, it began to rain. In a matter of moments, the heavy drops melted Jarietta down to her original size. Letting out a cry of defeat she ran to hide. As soon as she was gone, the rain stopped. The clouds vanished quickly and the three men were left dumbfounded.  
  
They chose not to question it. They just went home where they made a unanimous decision - no more male bonding trips. What none of them saw as they rode out of the desert was trails of black sand creeping out of Jarietta's oasis.  
  
***Not one of my best stories, but I swear this is all leading up to something.  
This is for three generations of men I know who rarely see eye to eye, but will always find something in common and try to keep their arguments down to a minimum.  
__________________  
***POLL TIME: Tell me your opinion. Do you want to see Kal and Celeste get together? Whatever your choice either tell me in your review or (if you don't want others to see your preference on this topic) e-mail me. My address is MaxVaughn@juno.com. Thanks. Your feedback is a big help.***  
WATCH FOR STORY 7: The Time Stones of Iretant  
Celeste is offered a way back to her own time by Mirage in exchange for the usual cliche favor 


End file.
